Jury deliberations in the case of John “Junior” Gotti took a stunning turn yesterday as jurors revealed they are split over whether the once-powerful gangster quit the Mafia – raising the specter of a mistrial.

Gotti’s eyes welled with tears of relief as Manhattan federal Judge Shira Scheindlin read a note from the anonymous jury that shows at least one member believes his defense that he withdrew from the mob.

“What do we do if we are deadlocked on the issue of withdrawal for Gotti?” the jury asked.

The question goes to the heart of Gotti’s claim that he hung up his gangster hat in 1999 when he pleaded guilty in an earlier racketeering case and went to prison.

If jurors are convinced he made a clean break from the mob, the five-year statute of limitations on racketeering conspiracy charges would force an acquittal.

The jury’s note also indicated they are battling over at least one specific charge in the indictment – though their note did not say whether this second deadlock applies to Gotti or one of his co-defendants, Michael Yannotti and Louis Mariani.

Scheindlin called the panel into the courtroom and delivered lengthy instructions on how to continue deliberating in the face of discord.

“If you fail to find a verdict, this case will in all likelihood have to be retried,” the judge cautioned. “I have no reason to believe a second jury would be more intelligent, more competent, than you.” The jury declined the judge’s offer to send in an afternoon snack as they filed back into the deliberation room. “We’d like a cruise,” one juror quipped.

Reacting to the jury’s apparent division, Gotti’s sister Victoria, of reality TV fame, said, “It doesn’t surprise me because my brother is innocent. My family expected him home already and we need him desperately.”

Gotti, 41, faces up to 30 years behind bars if he is convicted on four counts of racketeering conspiracy, with one including the alleged kidnapping of radio host Curtis Sliwa in 1992.

The feds claim Gotti directed two underlings to give Sliwa a severe beating, but the plan went awry when he was shot twice.

The jury is set to return today to continue its deliberations. A string of six mob turncoats testified against Gotti during the six-week trial, but none of the witnesses claimed to have direct dealings with Gotti in any criminal activity since prior to 1999.

Prosecutors claim Gotti received illegal cash during his imprisonment and gave the order to have a stash of machine guns moved while he was behind bars.

The feds are seeking to seize $25 million in assets.

In a blow to the defense, the judge refused to let jurors hear a collection of prison tapes that were secretly recorded over a span of 14 months that captured Gotti railing against the mob.